Iran's IRGC commander's threat: 'Harm any Shi'a cleric, and no American leaves the region alive'

A senior Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) commander has issued a threat to United States and its President Donald Trump, stating that any act of aggression against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and other senior cleric will "ensure that no American agent leaves the region alive."

Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, a high-ranking commander of the group which saw its entire leadership wiped out by Israeli air strikes, said the recent threats made by US President Donald Trump and Israel against Khamenei and other high-ranking Shi’a religious authorities were "dangerous, unlawful and tantamount to state-sponsored terrorism."

"Even imagining aggression against the Shi’a religious authorities will place every single American military and civilian official in the region at risk," Naqdi warned, adding that even repeating the rhetoric will not go without consequence.

He then turned on Trump, stating that the US President couldn't "grasp the meaning of Ayatollah al-Sistani’s message due to his foolishness".

"Let me explain the message clearly: any act of aggression—whether successful or not—against any Shi’a Marja will ensure that no American agent leaves the region alive," he added.

Naqdi's statement was in response to the threat made by Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz, who said that Israel had drawn up a plot to take out Khamenei. Trump too repeated the threat, stating they were aware of Khamenei's location and he was an easy target. "We are not going to take him out—at least not for now," Trump said.

'Israel's primary target: Police'

Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni has claimed that Iran’s law enforcement forces were the primary target of Israel's war on Iran. Momeni said the 150 police personnel died in the attacks designed to "create internal chaos." He added that Israel specifically focused on police stations and this was unprecedented in conventional warfare. This exposed its desperation to destabilize Iran after failing to achieve military objectives. "The enemy attacked police centres with unparalleled hatred because our forces foiled their plot to incite social unrest," Momeni said.

Middle East